Passenger Trains > Bill Crosbie Changes His Mind, Turns Down NJ Transit

Story just broke, a little over an hour ago:

NJ Transit Pick Changes His Mind
THE WALL STREET JOURNAL
NJ Transit’s search for a new leader will resume after former Amtrak executive backs out
by Andrew Tangel
April 20, 2016

> NJ Transit’s search for a new leader will resume as the former Amtrak
> executive named to the agency’s top post is backing out.
>
> William Crosbie, who was to start as NJ Transit’s next executive
> director later this month, cited concerns over relocating his family
> from Virginia, an agency spokesman said.
>
> “The decision came as a surprise to us because of the level of mutual
> enthusiasm we both shared when he accepted the offer,” Richard
> Hammer, who serves as NJ Transit’s chairman in his role as New
> Jersey’s acting transportation commissioner, said in a statement.
>
> Mr. Crosbie couldn’t immediately be reached late Wednesday. An
> engineer by training, Mr. Crosbie served as Amtrak’s chief operating
> officer before going on to head the North American office of Systra,
> a France-based transportation-consulting firm.

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NJ Transit Pick Changes His Mind



Edited 4 time(s). Last edit at 04/20/16 20:16 by GenePoon.

Isn't it a little bit too late for Bill Cosby to change his mind?   Oh, wait.  Never mind. 

It would be dumb to take a job and then quit in September.

Whoever is appointed head of NJ TRANSIT will probably be looking for new work after the 2017 election.

Posted from Android

> William Crosbie, who was to start as NJ Transit’s next executive
> director later this month, cited concerns over relocating his family
> from Virginia, an agency spokesman said.


It sounds as though there is a "She Who Must Be Obeyed" involved here,
too.

Frees him up to head to Amtrak, doesn't it ?

What were his big successes at Amtrak?

Seems to me he was very much anti-Heritgae Fleet. Wasn't he the one that couldn't get rid of the fleet fast enough and came up with the Diner Lite and Cross Country Cafe? Was here there when Gunn was there? There's history there with Crosbie at Amtrak.......

NJ.com says there was no agreement on salary and benefits, so he walked.

It could also be that the memorandum of understanding laying out the independence of the job wasn't agreeable to all parties.

http://www.nj.com/traffic/index.ssf/2016/04/incoming_nj_transit_boss_withdrew_over_compensation_package_source_says.html#incart_2box_nj-homepage-featured

Posted from Android

I think the CMO John Klein, not a very pleasant character,  was the one who wanted rid of the Heritage fleet the most. He and Crosbie did not get along, and a fight between them is when Crosbie left.

Lackawanna484 Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> NJ.com says there was no agreement on salary and
> benefits, so he walked.
>
> It could also be that the memorandum of
> understanding laying out the independence of the
> job wasn't agreeable to all parties.
>
> http://www.nj.com/traffic/index.ssf/2016/04/incomi
> ng_nj_transit_boss_withdrew_over_compensation_pack
> age_source_says.html#incart_2box_nj-homepage-featu
> red
>
> Posted from Android

it is possible that the real reason was the latter, but the former reason provides a good non-embarrassing cover. ;)

I wonder if Amtrak decided to offer a knock-out bid for Mr Crosbie's services to replace Mr Boardman?

They know him. The consultant undoubtedly had the info on the NJ Transit offer. If Mr Crosbie truly decided not to uproot his family, the outline of a workable deal was already on paper. Money, independence, etc.

It's possible Mr Crosbie conveyed to NJ that he intended to reduce the number of deputy assistant senior managing titles in NJT's overstuffed bureaucracy. Since many of those titles have Senate / Assembly / Governor sponsors, that could be deeply unpleasant. For the sponsors.

(For folks keeping score at home, NJ patronage jobs are extremely useful as political tender. If you play your cards right, you can triple dip pensions, etc. So, a long time employee of a legislator or governor's agency can get an authority or judge appointment paying 2x what the last job paid. As the pensions are integrated, all you need is two years in the new job to magically double your entire state pension.

So, the Governor makes a protege /  girl friend of a legislator a deputy assistant director of the Turnpike Authority or NJ Transit or the Del Bay Ferry Authority, etc. Now you're making $250,000. The legislator owes the Gov. When do-gooders like Crosbie try to get this dead wood cleared out, the sponsors become very unhappy.

Careful readers will also note that these problems never seem to be mentioned when 20 year teachers or road workers get screwed over on their pensions or medical...)